Coach construction



H. E. FOX

COACH CONSTRUCTION Feb. 6, 1940.

5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 3, 1939 735 I Z I 5%? attorneys H. E. FOX 2,189,139

GOACH CONSTRUCTION Filed Febl 3, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 H. E. FOX

COACH CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 3. 1939 Feb. 6, 1940.

3 Sheets- Sheet 3 Q'zdfold 5,

Patented Feb. 6, 1940 concu CONSTRUCTION Harold E. Fox, Pontiac, Mich, assignor to Yellow Truck & [Coach Manufacturing Company,

Pontiac,Micli;, a corporationofllylainef v Application.Februaryfi, IQSQ Ser iaILNO. 254,541

5 Claims. (crest- 1g This inventionrelates to 'motorvehiclesand more particularly to I an improvement in. base irame'structures. Road vehicles as. usually con- =struotedhave the body carried on a main frame W5 which consists essentially of two heavy. longitudinal members extending from front to rear and 1 the running gear supports the frame through shackle brackets mounted directly on the main longitudinals. As distinguished from the con- -ventiona1 the present invention is concerned with a structure; in which the main chassis iframeis eliminated and wherein the body side walls and {roof cooperate in forming a load carryingtruss from which the loadis transmitted through front and rear bucks to the road gear, Accordingly I the floor is supported upon a series of longitudinally spaced cross member assemblies, each joined h rear end construction illustrated in' 'Figures' 2 and 3 is intended for supporting an electric motor at opposite ends tothe body side walls, with those cross a members immediately adjacent the front and rear axles mounted on the axle springs.

object of the invention is to provide an *under floor orbase frame which canbe made up '"in'theordinary shop without expensive equipment from low cost standard section. andwlight 85 for mutual reinforcement and resistance to to-rsional stress.

. A-further objectis-to provide a cross member whose parts can be brought together in a-bench fixture and joined as a subassembly thereby 40- eliminating confusion and reducing the number of operations .on the final assemblyline.

'' Astill further objectof the invention is to pro- -vide abase frame construction which can be readily and quickly assembled by bringing together the required number of cross member units to form the frontand rear bucks'and j'oining them in proper: spaced relation by longitudinal tie bars whose primary function is. that of spacers but which also may be arranged for 00- operation with the axle mounted cross members in imparting stiifness thereto. 1.

Additional objects and advantages will becom apparent during the course of the-following specification having reference to the accompanying V drawings wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view rows on; lines 3-} ahd l -d ofFigu're .2;"F1g 5jand6yare elevations of 'certa1nfof.thehcross f 1 member assemblies witliparts in section'onliiies v -5 a 1- r enl stmen .o rr giire' 2 andflf g- 'ure 7 s aflet i yl l dife t l 'ila il 3 en 10 c an internal combustion sgsie; "either '1 event the power plant is contained within a'" compartthefbulkhead l; is joined [to the [side l gs or a 1 U shaped rear bumper channel 4; 'llh's sidelje'gs extend forwardly of the bullihead aiid ardiconnected'to the opposite ends-of across niembehzisf additional cross member "assembliesi are located at spaced intervals throughout the le'ngth of the veflanges fonattach'ment Qtt eornerj posts other .of thetbaseyf rame with the body outline illus .trajtedzby broken linesyl l gurefz is'a toppljan view of the frarne; Fig es"? n aresid'felfevations on a largerjscale of the ien'd portions of the .frarneas iew in the r io of th a iconstruction.

fllhe h illustr ted is motor t n-ea the hi hwa an -J 1; 'ei .drivenj either by an electric. motor s ty a .ternal combus tion 3 engine mounted at I the irear pior drivin ther r; set o h l n wider control of an, operator seatedfat the front; The

while that-of; Figure "Ii s esi ne for suppfo ung merit b we n t e m i i iie d ai e d spaced bulkhead indicatedat i F2 The bulkhead is in the, nature oi aflatmetal platestifienedby .certainanglestrapsf as, for eiiainplegtl'iie ens verse strap 2,.whichalsiol provides seating ledge for the rearend of the floor 3. At espositeends sembly immediatel ahead otthe bulkhead. jlhe hicle with that at the front constituting a forward bumper tq which is connected theflbody front wall. The front bumper sub-'assemblyincludes a pair of. vertically spaced and forwardly arched upper and lower ,ra'ils 5 and ii'joined' together by vertically;disposed. and transversely spaced plates. The tr ansverse rails. of angle section stock out to'proper lngth'hfave jtheir vertical flanges ri vetedtothe top and bottom edges of the conhectingpl'aites." As best seen in Figure l the connecting plates comprise" a centrally disposed plate "Lil, pair of end plates and 9 anda pair of intermediateplates IVa'ndYII,

the Lendmostplates having rearwardlyexten'ding body structure. j At i nal spa d n rv s et front and rear walls are the several pric s Ihnh ber subeassemblies 1 indicated in thef'drawin'gs at B, on F. G and w iehl i rrt li i lfl br 3 and are joined at opposite ends with the body side walls with the A and B cross members mounted on opposite ends of the load supporting leaf springs of the front axle assembly and F and G cross members mounted on the opposite ends of the springs in the rear axle assembly. Thus the running gear receives the load from the front and rear sets of cross members A-B and F-G, re-

go'and the like. At the top and bottom of each truss are transversely extending rails, preferably 'of structural section shape, the floor rail being illustrated as of T -section and the bottom rail of l.'-'section with flat gusset plates riveted to the 25 vertical flanges of the rails at transversely spaced intervals and certain of the neighboring plates :being additionally jointed to short length diagonal bars of angle section." Only standard stock parts are needed and these are simply cut to size without bending or machining operations.

Inasmuch as the cross members do not differ essentially from one another the drawings show ,only'the members F and G on an enlarged scale. Referring first to the cross member F in Figure 6 a the upper or T-section rail on which the flooring rests is indicated at l2 and the lower or L-section rail at l3. Their ends at the left in Figure 6 have riveted to the vertical flanges a gusset plate M which extends slightly beyond the rails for attachment with an adjacent body post in the side wall of the vehicle. A similar gusset plate I5 connects the opposite" ends of the rails and proijvides' for attachment with a-body post in the other side wall of the body. The side wall attachments extend throughout the depth of the wall skirts and insure firm and secure fastenings.

Atth'e vehicle center line the vertically spaced rails are'tied together by an angle strap 16 riveted to'upper and lower end plates IT and I8, each in turn riveted to the vertical rail flanges. Between the center strap l6 and the end plate M are a pair of vertical plates l9 and 20 riveted at opposite'ends to the upper and lower rails and spaced apart a given distance for a purpose to be referred to. A similar set of plates 2| and 22 coninect the rails intermediate the strip l6 and end plate l5.

For additional rigidity diagonal braces can be incorporated'in the cross members as a part of the sub-assembly and are illustrated as an inwardly and upwardly extending angle strap 23 I riveted at'opposite ends to the plates I4 and I9;

a downwardly and inwardly extending angle strip 24 riveted at opposite ends to the plates 20 and I8; a downwardly and inwardly extending angle strap 25 riveted at opposite ends to the plates l8 and 2| and an upwardly and inwardly extending angle strap 26 riveted at opposite ends to the plates 22 and I5. Also as a part of the sub-assembly operations corner gusset plates may be added to the plates I9, 20, 2| and 22 adjacent the intervening space between the two plates of each set. These additional plates are not to be seen in Figure 6 because they occur on the far side of the structure but they are shown in other views as for example in Figure 3 where the numeral 21 indicates a corner gusset plate riveted to one flange of an attaching angle or corner piece 28 whose other flange is riveted to the plate 22. The same reference characters are applied to similar parts in Figure 5 and elsewhere.

The F-cross member structure just described may be the same for all cross members A to H, inclusive, although variations may be introduced to fit particular installations. Among other things the inclination of the diagonal braces may be reversed in some of the cross members, for example, in the cross members C, D and E which transfer their load into the body side walls. Variations are also incorporated in the cross member G as seen in Figure 5 because of the rear end electric. motor drive installation. The difierence is merely in the addition of a motor supporting assembly at the center of the cross member consisting of a mounting shelf or plate 29 riveted at one side to a corner gusset plate 2i and atits oppositeside to a similar plate 33 carried by an angle strap or corner piece 3|. The angle straps at, opposite sides of the shelf 29 are rivetedto the top and bottom rails and reinforced by suitable gusset plates 32. A gusset plate 33 and angle strap mounting 35 is located in spaced relation with the plate 30 for cooperation therewith as will be later described and a diagonal brace 35 is riveted to both angles 3| and 34 at one end and to the plate 20 at the opposite end. Gusset plates 30 and 33 are also incorporated in the H-cross member.

spaces between the plates l9 and 2E] and plates 2| and 22 a pair of longitudinal rails or bars 36 and 3lwhich are then secured by rivets to the several corner plates 2'! immediately beneath the transverse floor rails I2. For stilfness the longitudinal top for a smooth upper surface and the dependent flanges at each side receive the fastening. rivets joining the two side plates at eachcross member. The drawings show the longitudinal .ties are of channel section with the web at the.

ties 36 and 37 extending continuously between,

the front and rear body walls but as an optional construction they may be made in sections tojoin only certain of the cross members at the front and certain of those at the rear in which case the base frame would consist of two independent end bucks over the front and rear axles and joined only through the body walls. Supplemental tie sections 38 and 39 at the front and 38' and 39' at the rear may be employed to increase resistance to frame twist. These also. are of. channel section and are received within the openings of the cross members with their side flanges riveted to the gusset plates 2l--2l below and in vertically spaced relationwith the main tie bars 36and 31. The supplemental tie sections 38 and 39 in the forward buck extend from the front bumper to the C-cross member and the sections .38 and 39 in the rear buck extend from the E-cross member either to. the rear bumper channel as in Figure 3 or to the bulkhead l as in Figure 7.

At the front ends the ties 31 and 39 are'joined through a pair of gusset plates and corner angles to the plate ID of the front cross member assembly and similar gusset plates and corner angles secure the front ends of the ties 36 and 38 to c the plate" H25 "Gusseted atc pcsiteendsaa the plate 1and to the centraltportion 'of the 'A-cross member-is an auxiliary .rail' lll fromithe underside; ofwhich extends downwardly-and forwardly 'a dia'gonal' brace 4 l'kto ibe secured to'the lower rail- 6 of the fronti'c'ross member 'withforwardlyj projecting apertured portions t me pr'o'vide-a tow V through open-ings inthe bulkhead I and to which they are suitably fastened and are anchored to the rear bumper channel t by means of gusset plates M. Similar gussets fastento the bumper 4 the rear ends of a pair of superposed supplemental tie rails 45 and 46 which extend forwardly through the bulkhead! and I-I-cross member a and are fastened at their front ends to the G- cross member by the plates 39 and 33 as seen in Figure 5. Where an internal combustion engine is to be mounted transversely within the power plant compartment the several longitudirial ties will end at the bulkhead as seen in Figure 7 and anumber of rails M will bridge the space between the lower edges of the bulkhead land cross member =1 to the engine. i

Over the front axle the lowermost tie rails 38 and 39 arehumped upwardly, (see Ffigure 4) for axle clearance and in compensation the upper rails 36 and 37 are also bowed upwardly so that their top surface between the A and B cross members is even with the underside of the floor and the upper surface of the several T-section rails l2, To provide floor support between the .40

rather widely spaced A and B cross members a pair of bars 48 extend transversely across and into the running gear. Aicontinuation of the are riveted at opposite ends to the innermost 1 flanges of the rails 36 and 31. .Tothebutermost flange of each longitudinal tie rail is riveted (see Figure 4) a wheelhousing-plate '39 which extends across the space between the upper rail and its cooperating lower rail and also is riveted tothe lower rail. Its length is such as to tie A the upper and lower rails together throughout the whole of the distance separating the A and B cross members so as materially to stiffen the parts in the region where the load is transmitted plate above the uppermost tie rail forms a closure for the inner, end of the wheel housing or well and it, is bounded by angle straps 56 for connection with the curvedhousing which extends laterally to the body side wall. On the outer face of the stiffening plate t9 are secured by certain of the fastening rivets the plate brackets 5!, :32 and 53. Brackets 5! and 53 are for mountingspring bumperpads while the bracket 52 is for the attachment-of an axle shock absorber. v a Similar stiffening plates 5 (see Figure 3) bejtween the F and G cross members are riveted to the outer faces of the vertically spaced. tie

rails, each having an upward extension for C:

ing the inner end of the wheel'housing. Here again both tie rails are offset upwardly for axle clearance and spaced cross bars 55 provide floor r side walls and adapted for support on the vehicle road gear and a series of similar Sub-assemblies support between the? and G cross members.

For mounting the cross members on the opposite ends of the transversely spaced leaf springs associated with the front and rear axles, shackle member; the-"longiafford a supporting cradle for brackets- 56 of cast aiuminumrfare provided; These brackets are of U -shape in'transversesection to straddleor ,fiton opposite sides of the longitudinal tie bars in the corners at the respective cross members.

they 'are'boltedor otherwise fastened totthe=gusset plates 1 9-20 or-2 F 22 as the case'mayibeand By lateral flanges at each" side for additional anchoragethe side wings may also be'boltcd 'to;the longitudinal tie rails-so that-the shackle brackets assist in affording effective cor hers andthe tie rails at points ofloadconcentra- -I claim":" 1: In' 'a vehicle construction, a base' frameineluding front and rear bucks each comprising a pair of longitudinally spacedcross-members and each crossjmember including a pair of vertically spaced transverse rails extending across the vehicle from side to side, end gusset plates connecting said rails, and additional rail connecting plates spaced inwardly of said end plates, a pair of transversely spaced longitudinal tie members between said cross members, each including a pair of vertically spaced rails joined to saidin ward plates and a vertically disposed stiifening plate connecting the longitudinal rails, and

spring hanger brackets straddling said longitudinal tiemembers andmounted on said inward gusset platesof the cross members.

2. In a vehicle base frame, a pair of cross member assemblies adapted for supporting connection at opposite ends with the vehicle side walls, each assembly including a pair of vertically housing closure plate secured to both bars to afford torsionalstiifness thereto.

3 A vehicle base frame including a pair of transversely spaced longitudinal bars a, series of longitudinally spaced transverse floor rails exher joints'betweenthe main loadcarryinginemtending across and beyond the sides of said'b ars',

vertically disposed corner gussets joiningthe rails and bars, a transverse rail spaced vertically be ne'ath each of the before mentioned rails and securedto said gussets, end gusset plates joining superposed rails at both ends thereof and adapted for supporting connection with the vehicleside walls, road gear supporting brackets carried by the gussets of two pairs of cooperating rails near the front and rear, respectively, of the vehicle, supplementary longitudinal bars bridging the space between the rails of each of said'pairs in connecting the superposed bars.

'4. In a'motor vehicle having side wallsand a roof, a base frame including a front and a rear load supportingbuck, each comprising a pair of longitudinally spaced transversely. extendingopen frame si beassenr blies made up, respectively, of a pair of vertically spaced rails and vertically disposed gusset plates joining the opposite ends of said rails for load receiving connection withthe located between the front and rear bucks and suspended at opposite ends fromthe side walls for cooperation with the first mentioned subassemblies in supporting a floor.

5. In a motor vehicle having a roof and side walls; a base frame including a series of transversely extending sub-assembly units, longituand others receiving the load from and suspending the side walls and being arranged at the front and the rear of the vehicle in pairs with the sub-assembly units of one pair cooperating to receive the forward running gear therebetween and the rearward running gear, shackle brackets carried by the gusset plates ofthe sub-assembly units of said pairs and through which the load is transmitted into the running gear, longitudinally exg tendingtie bars connecting the units of each pair in bridging relation-to the associated running gear and being arranged in transversely spaced sets of two vertically spaced bars fastened to adjacent gusset plates and a stiffening plate joining the vertically spaced bars of each set and cooperating therewith to resist relative displacement of the interconnected cooperating units.

" HAROLD E. FOX. 

